Book Reviews

Book Blurb

Hiring a boyfriend for Christmas; what could possibly go wrong?

 

Derek is facing yet another Christmas where his life feels out of control. He has a new career that doesn’t feel like his, and parents who would just love to see him settled down. All he needs is a temporary buffer for the parties he has to attend, and for his parents to leave him alone. Enter, Luke.

 

Luke is twenty-thousand dollars short for the renovations on Halligans; his family’s bar in New York’s Financial District. A favor for a buddy has him agreeing to play the part of boyfriend to a guy with more money than sense.

 

But when the spirit of Christmas works its magic on the two men, and they begin to fall for each other, Derek runs scared, and Luke needs space.

 

It doesn’t matter what obstacles you throw in the way of love, or how much you run in the other direction, because, when you’re least expecting it, whether you want it or not, love happens anyway.

 

Book Review

‘Love Happens Anyway’ has one of my all-time favorite plots: a pretend-boyfriend, hired to stop questions from meddling parents, turning into so much more than a temporary stopgap measure. Not without obstacles, of course, and with many a misunderstanding and even some hurt feelings along the way, but the basic idea had me fascinated and enthusiastic before I even opened this book. The fact that it is written by RJ Scott, one of my favorite authors, clearly had something to do with my excitement as well… And I was not disappointed! But let me start at the beginning, or this will never become a “proper” review.

Derek may have “more money than sense” (as per blurb), but he is far from happy. He is nominally in charge of an advertising agency that his grandfather started and his father wants to retire from managing, but Derek is not really running it. Derek is not even sure that he wants to be in advertising, but he definitely wants to do things differently from the way he is expected to. His parents accept that he is gay, but cannot stop from “hinting” that he should settle down, suggesting dates, etc. Derek tries to stay away from them as much as he can, with varying degrees of success. It’s to the point where he keeps his stories straight (or his lies organized, depending on how you look at it) by keeping notes he refers to when talking to his mother and father on the phone. It sounds funny, but I think it’s actually very sad.

Luke is not in control of his life either but for very different reasons. His background eerily matches what Derek has thought up for his pretend boyfriend, but with a different outcome. Luke is desperate for money so he can finish renovating his family’s bar, and has no way of getting it; bank after bank refuses his applications for a loan. Then the opportunity to play Derek’s boyfriend comes along, and while Luke is less than enthusiastic, what choice does he have?

Derek’s and Luke’s worlds collide in more ways than one. There are many misunderstandings, lots of discussions to “get their facts straight”, and a gradual realization – on both sides – that there is more than a contract of four weeks, ending in a planned breakup, between them. As much as they get closer, they each have various reasons for running scared of more than a pretend relationship and/or a casual acquaintance – what with how different they are. Only a miracle, the spirit of Christmas, or RJ Scott’s magic can save these men from making a colossal mistake by giving up on more before they have even tried it.

If you like pretend-to-real boyfriend stories, if you want to see two men go from a contractual relationship to falling in love, and if you’re looking for a sweet, funny, thoughtful read that might just make you smile, then you will probably like this novel as much as I do. It’s fantastic, magical, and miraculous with a perfect ending as the proverbial icing on the cake.

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Love Lane Books for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novella, 154 pages/42500 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	02-December-2017
Price	$2.99 ebook, $9.99 paperback
Buy Link	https://www.amazon.com/Love-Happens-Anyway-RJ-Scott-ebook/dp/B077WSVY2B